New Zealand Motoring Reviews and Experiences

Mercedes-Benz V 250 BlueTEC AVANTGARDE.

Being the largest in their premium passenger car range the V-Class comfortably seats 8 people but being a Mercedes it has a style and luxury that you wouldn’t expect in an MPV. LED technology brightens its pretty face and the sloping screen gives it ‘the most aerodynamic in the segment’ status plus assists in its 6.3L/100k combined fuel economy.

Round back the V-Class has a segment first Dual Access loading door. The rear windscreen lifts separately to a shelf that can take up to 50kgs of weight (it also has 2 pop up and removable baskets for groceries etc). Single touch/Easy pack rear door opens to a single or dual layer baggage area. Essentially both quick and easy on the run or bulkier stowage are easily catered for in the V-Class.

But enough of all that; it’s the inside where you really see a difference. What Mercedes have done is taken out the normally drab people mover interior and replaced it with the look and feel of a C-Class, it’s all Lugano Leather and high gloss trim. The seats are comfortable, completely adjustable and heated but lack slightly in leg depth. The instrument panel is clear and unmistakeably Mercedes and all the added infotainment is displayed on the 21.3cm colour screen – including things like the 3 colour ambient lighting and 360 degree cameras for parking assist.

16 high performance speakers fill the vast cabin with rich sound broadcasted from the Burmester stereo. Both side access doors are controlled by buttons on the dash – a thrill for my 5 year old and to me too if I’m honest.

The near ‘car like’ drive is both quiet and easy especially from such a relatively big vehicle. Agility select switch controls four separate driving modes, comfort through to sport, yes I said sport. The V-250 has a 2.1Litre has as much pulling power as the previous 3L V6 Turbo, in ‘overtorque’ it produces 150kW and 480Nm with a 0-100 of 9.1 sceonds. Agility control also messes with the suspension for driving safety in various road conditions. On the subject of safety the V-Class has incorporated driving assists such as ‘Blind spot’, ‘Attention’, ‘Lane keeping’ and ‘Cross Wind’ to stop excessive movement in strong winds from this semi high sided vehicle.

For passenger comfort Mercedes engineers have almost halved the previous models ‘Noise, Vibration & Harshness’ and enhanced the Themotronic individualised climate control. There is even a pre entry climate control button on the key.

To sum it all up, the new V-250 is an impressive way to move a fairly large amount of family/passengers around in car-like Mercedes luxury. It’s comfort levels and quality are through the roof and an amazing example of what can be achieved in this segment.